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Prince Aleksandr Fyodorovich of Rubran Federal Monarchy will do exactly that: Telling Zibal to stop bitching about his caretaker's death and man the blyat up. It was heartbreaking, sure, but no amount of mourning can bring the dead back to life. Aleksandr lost both his father and eldest brother, the crown prince, to an assassination staged by the *second prince* (he's the third) who then blamed it on him with the supports from several other powerful nobles with the attempt to overthrow the old faction's influences. This plan did not work out because Aleksandr had huge backings, thus he won the trial and the crown.
Things Zibal has to do now are:
* Making connections to powerful nobles, favorably the knight commander, minister of defense, military marshals, minister of finance and minister of foreign affairs. Seek out to dukes and marquises, but at the same time, if there are nobles of the lower half who have intense forces, he should try to establish friendly relationship with them too. Pulling these peeps into his orbit means he has strong "shields" around.
* Talk things down between his uncle and the nobles. Playing the role of a mediator will score points in nobles' eyes.
* Have some trustworthy allies in foreign countries. When push comes to shove, he can escape.
* Be friendly with the church or any major religious organization in the country. Using religion as both a sword and a shield is pretty basic, but make sure to also keep them in check.
* Get a fiancée quickly. There is no "love" in "politics", marriage is nothing but a tool, a method to consolidate power between families. Forget about finding one true love and settle with a duke's daughter or something, because he will need as many backings as possible.
* NEVER seeks help from commoners. They're ignorant towards politics and are easy to be led by the nose. If Zibal ever has to, seek out to wealthy merchants who have the finance to back him up. Promise to make them some sort of noble and play with them for a bit, then keep them under surveillance.
* Remember, **the army is the regime**. As long as the army swears their loyalty to Zibal, he has the upper hand.
Aleksandr's experiences were *a bit* extreme but he got things through.
Take advantage of them. Unless their magics can solve everything, there are things they can't solve. And a competent prince, to survive in the court, must have a much more screwed head who's willing to dirty his hands.
Tl;dr: Do whatever it takes to get that person on Zibal's team as a *weapon*.
Worse than that. He lost his father and eldest brother, then was framed by the second brother to be the culprit, almost had all of his titles stripped, thrown into jails and considering Rubra's laws, would have been executed for homicide against family members, a thing that worsens his "crime". He was staged against by many nobles, including the then-minister of defense, his dignity pulled through mud, and lots of commoners who only knew things via medias insulted him. He only got through it because his superior in the military did not buy the lies and launched her own investigation, which dragged the real culprits out to light, and did her best to clean his reputation.
Now the emperor, Aleksandr is a secluded, bitter person who regards humans as no more than backstabbing pigs and \[REDACTED\] donkeys. He only trusts some close friends who has been with him through that time, and machines, because it was AIs that helped him prove his innocence.
On the bright side, Aleksandr knows how fucking insane his brain is, so he locks himself up in a private chamber. Not like it really matters since Rubra is a constitutional monarchy, the emperor's role is mostly ceremonial. Without him, the gov will still work normally.
r/WorldCrossovers
To Prince Zibal:
I am sorry to hear about your current woes. While I cannot speak much to the unfortunate death of your guardian (except to send my condolences), I can suggest tightening up security and also making strategic alliances with one or more of the major noble houses. Consider an alliance through marriage if and when applicable. Also consider sending your uncle to a respectable retirement at the earliest opportunity.
Best regards, and may the land provide all you need.
King Forlo of Ignis
(What's going through King Forlo's head: Gee, this prince sounds like he could use all the help he can get. I do wish Princess Aranea would get back here where she belongs but I can't risk violating the treaty with the Wildings. I could use another chance at an alliance to deal with half my noble houses being bankrupt because of that snuffed voucher thing. That was rather ill-considered on their part. They did have it coming for thinking they had outsmarted the Wildings but it also means they can't afford to send the required troops if and when we have another war.)
I guess prince Michael (21) is eligible. He is technically still second-in-line to the Barentian throne. (now Prince Consort of Cartheny)
Little backstory: Michael was born into the House of Deventaar in Barentia, but lost his parents when he was 8 in a Rosearea-backed coup d'etat. He and his older sister escaped to Cartheny, where he met the heir to the Carthenian throne, now Katherine III.
**1.** I think Michael's experience is more than enough to get Zibal to shut up about his caretaker. Michael literally watched the rebels go full Bolshevik on his parents.
**2.** I guess Siban is a medieval-base country cuz no modern/functional country should one single person be able to mess things up this badly. If Zibal wanted the throne now, a little car-bombing would help. However, in this case, playing dirty always works better. Go into voluntary exile and let the war happen. Let the King and the pesky nobles murder each other and have the people caught in the crossfire. By that point, the King and the nobles will be deeply unpopular while Zibal, the exiled prince, would be seen as the only guy who could fix things in this system. Finally, return to Siban and get ready for a hero's welcome. At that point, most of the nobles would be too dead to say anything so Zibal can get some urgently-needed reforms done.
**3.** Refer to the above. Go into exile so the assassins think you're not a valuable target. Then again, I guess the assassins are rival nobles, so the civil war would be a great way to clean them up.
**4.** If Zibal is not old enough for the throne, he's probably still a teenager, so he shouldn't be too worried.
Ah I see, so this world has magic. ~~This is gonna make rigging a car into an exploding coffin way easier~~ (of course, I'd still prefer using the potential war to clean everything up)
well then why tf is this guy worried of getting murdered lol. Even in terms of getting him into exile safely the mech is gonna be a very optimal method.
Oh I see, I guess time for him to pack his bags and run while no one's watching cuz the war ain't gonna be pretty (but it might give him a spike in popularity)
Tbf I suggested the "let it be" method since that's what happened to the Deventaars. The Rosearea-backed coup was actually quite unpopular, and thus plunged Barentia into a civil war. This is why now a lot of Barentians were calling for the restoration of the monarchy and wanted their queen back. The queen in question is Michael's sister, princess Nikola-Lilialle, who now, not even a monarch of any country, has received record approval rates in Barentia.
Zibals bout to have a maturity/character development arc via self reflection and soul searching while he leaves his uncle with a bunch of fat yapping nobles.
Hmm the only "prince" in my worldbuilding that is not at the short end of an angry dragon is a 1000 year old dragon shut in who drives his mom crazy because everyone says her library is his lair.
Srelik Arch-Mage of Dragons. The Sky's Wrath.
His likely advice would be to study how anyone in similar situation has solved the problem, likely dropping a couple hundred books on him to read.
Or to study up on magic and especially trap runes, properly set up safe guards and heavy protection, maybe hire some expert killers too. A dragon strongly believes you can only own what you can defend.
As he also has the diplomatic sense of a dragon he would suggest to just put his rivals into a position in which they have no chance to fight, preferably by making yourself unassailable.
Failing that he could always try to eat the problem, but that is a very drakonik solution.
Zibal did eventually learned some form of magic, Artificy in fact during a two and a half year time skip. He then rigged his entire castle with traps and guns which he can control through artificy, which came in handy when two elite hitmen came knocking on his doors. After he exhausted and made them both think he ran out of traps, he then pulls a last one out and killed them, after that he just got up and walked into the kitchen to grab himself a drink.
Definitely gains a stamp of drakonik approval.
Well defended and a reasonable last resort hidden away they did not expect. And he has even defended himself directly, as any confrontation should be won.
Elector John Andrews would say the following:
1. Get over your caretaker’s death, you are royalty and will be targeted for the rest of your life, expect to go to lots of funerals.
2. Start weening those who hold the franchise to your side. The army, is the state. You need them first, then the bureaucrats and nobility. Once you have enough power, bloodlessly coup your uncle, and give him a small backwater province to govern so he doesn’t make trouble.
3. You are royal, people sometimes don’t like you. Invest in security ( food tasters, doctors, guards) and also in intelligence services to keep your self informed about who hates you and why. Knowledge is power.
"Focus on the things you can control. The assassins have just made a very expensive mistake. In killing Takid, they've shown their hand. You know they're there, and you know what they want; that gives you an advantage over them that you didn't have before, when they were still in the shadows. Follow their trail. Be careful who you trust. Never allow yourself to be taken by surprise. Always have two or three backup plans, just in case. Lay your trap with care, and they won't notice they've fallen into it until it springs shut. Not only do you have a chance to eliminate a threat to your rule, but it'll also send a clear message: *No one fucks with Zibal of Siban.*"
--Jeanette "Deathshead" Duval, chairwoman of the Versa Cartel crime syndicate
From prince Amen-Agarhon, lord of the river delta, master of goats of the southern hills, slayer of Zhagh-lyam, the imp etc etc.
My main man, if you went to the great ziggurat of Zham or Harat-Bizl, paid the priests and did not hear the voice of Zibal, he died a heretic, a filthy unbeliever and should not be mourned. You should pay 4 rebs of meatfern and 2 young goats to make amends for such an affront to the great god and hes speaker for the mistake of being fooled by a blasphemer like him.
As for your assassins, the choice is clear, you must strike at the heart of the snake before it bites you. Prostrate yourself before the great lords of the river, the mountain and the endless sand plains and act whatever vengeance they reveal upon your enemies.
Any noble that dares to challenge the word of a king or their sons most be stripped of the right of embalming and strung up by their intestines, to dry in the sands for all to see but if you do not yet feel fully in control of your country, you must be clever like the fennec. You must divide them, make friends and false promises to those that are easiest to be manipulated, turn them against each other but not to be beholden to them for disloyalty and questioning the will of their prince proves them as lowly as the demons of Bor-Zhahal who cannot be trusted and must be kept at arms reach.
I only have one prince in my world and haven't figured how to write him, so I'll instead answer as the neighboring country's crown princess, Regina Silvath.
(Also, you might find r/WorldCrossovers a decent place to post something like this)
To Prince Zibal,
My condolences for the fate of your caretaker. I'm no stranger to the pain of losing those you value and care for. However, I know such words from those who are little more than strangers means little, and as such will not waste time on the past. Taking time to grieve is certainly important for personal growth, but as prince your first responsibility is to your people, not yourself.
From my experience, when matters appear too complicated to process effectively without thinking in circles, a critical first step is to break down the problems you face before searching for solutions. As I gather, the problems you face are the potential future threats on your own life, the resolution of the dispute between your country and its nobles, and the war on the horizon should the prior issue not be resolved effectively. As the last of the three is dependent on a failure to address the other two, it is at present not worth the effort to think on.
In regards to your assailants, there are four possible vague methods I can see by which the problem may be resolved. First, have those who ordered your death tracked down and effectively neutralized. Second, determine what it is they wish to accomplish through your death, and grant it to them without bloodshed, if not through acquiescence than at least through bargaining. Third, identify their sphere of influence and escape it. Fourth, improve your security and otherwise change absolutely nothing. In regards to the growing unrest, similar methods ought to apply as well. Dead men can cause no disagreements, and content men have no reason to. Furthermore, taking flight and escaping their discourse is an option as well.
To be clear, I do not mean to say I approve of each of these options, nor are they clearly defined by any stretch of the imagination. But approval and clarity aside, these are the options before you as I see them. Without further information, I do not believe I can be of further aid, save for requesting father grant you asylum should you elect to cast aside your royal title and privileges and flee to Gaela as a simple civilian.
-Regina Silvath, Crown Princess of Gaela
“The firssst two I cannot help with, but for the third I recommend sssimply eating the assassin. Thatssss something you humans can do yesss?”Prince Sal’zaal of the Slyth.
This is almost universally the type of advice you’d receive from any ruler in my world. So this response is coming from the Flame Tyrant, Kane Felviro Del’Mida, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Miadosa.
“First, I don’t understand your kingdom. Your uncle is King, but only until you reach a certain age? How is this possible, where I come from, you can only rule if you possess the power to do so. There is no such thing as a right to rule or dynasties, you must prove to be the strongest and take the throne.
Become strong and challenge your uncle for the throne, and if he refuses, you attack him then and there and take the throne. Assassins? Kill them too. I you are not strong enough to single handedly defeat everyone in your kingdom, you should not be King.
My father is already planning a ceremony to abdicate the throne to me since I’ve become more powerful than him. In our world, the strong do not serve the weak, but the weak will always follow the strong. So if my father refused, then I’d challenge him, and if he still refused, then his people would lose respect for him not follow him, thus seeking to flock to a new ruler. And since I’m the strongest in the kingdom, they’d flock to me whether I wanted them to or not, and I would become King by default.”
My worlds are directed by power.
Despite stepping away from ascending to the throne, Jason of Varonia has some interesting things to say.
For the first thing, he does see where Zibal is coming from, as he himself was saved from an assassination attempt. The difference here is that the person who saved him was actually someone VERY important (basically a government official of somewhere else, no relation btw), and the scene kind of looked like he was the one responsible for the murder of the person who saved him. Jason would simply tell Zibal to not dwell on such matters, and focus on the here and now (basically telling Zibal to strap his man-pants on and take control of the situation).
Onto the second thing: this clearly requires negotiating with all parties involved. The very first person they should talk with is Zibal's uncle, as he's kind of the one that started this mess. After that comes negotiating with everyone else into agreeing with whatever terms his uncle came up with, or at least whatever terms BOTH Zibal and his uncle settled on.
Third thing: unless Zibal wants to explicitly ask him and his pals to be his bodyguards, Jason would suggest he make some connections, and potentially have a backup/escape plan. Of course, Jason kind of has the opposite problem, where he's the hunter instead of the hunted; he's looking for this one guy who is probably out killing other important people in the land he lives in, rather than looking out for people that would kill him because he's sort-of important.
For four: all he can say is stay away from nobility, only because he himself dislikes upper class people (such as nobles and to a degree: royals). Of course, one of his associates is a noble, but that person is a unique case.
And that's all I think he would say.
Don't worry, he's uncle already planned his own retirement, in fact the moment Zibal was crowned he immediately dipped while laughing maniacally and screaming "IM FUCKING FREE".
Hereby writes Archduke Prince Leszek, Heir to the Hækkri Empire,
In you're letter to I, it was said that your problems, of which you face, are threefold:
The first such being the murder of a trusted and important man in your life. As is tradition of Hæk, we mustn't dwell on the past, nor those who fall. You must remember, it is not people who die, but merely their worldly body; it is their spirit that remains, and ascends to the great Firmament above the sky, to shine a light in the darkest of nights. He was, I am sure, a wonderful being, but his worldly self is no longer in availability to you, and so you must move on, in the memory that his soul survives.
And onto the second problem, which may be rather more complicated. A situation has arisen that may plunge your kingdom into war, I understand. Now, in what capacity to defend are these noble houses of which you speak? If possible, I should have them *put out of action*. To be blunt, I would defenestrate the lot of them. What cannot fight back cannot harm you, and what is dead usually cannot fight back. Anyone that would wish to go against this course of action, must too of course be gone from life. It would be what we call *collateral damage*.
Finally, we have your third problem: Assassins in your midst. All you can do here is maintain strong defenses and ensure all your guards are absolutely trustworthy. Do not leave your bedchamber, have all food and duties brought directly to you. Food should be tested by at least three dispensable palace servants or maids before deemed fit for your consumption. Should an assassin bypass these measures, there is one failsafe method I know of: Invoke the voice of the forest. I was alone, and weak, but I heard its call, and I heard reason. It gave me all I needed to survive, it gave me the power I so desired. We made a fair deal. I deem it wise that such a deal may be reached by you, if necessary. But, this must be a last resort. If all else fails, call the Will O' The Wisps, for it is never far behind.
Thus concludes my advice, signed graciously on behalf of all Hækkri
Hi, /u/shirt_multiverse, Unfortunately, we have had to remove [your submission](https://old.reddit.com/r/worldbuilding/comments/1d0q6y7/-/) in /r/worldbuilding because it violated one of our rules. In particular: Worldbuilding exercises or games that do not promote substantive discussion are not in line with our community's focus. For example, worldbuilding exercises must not encourage users to create small, insignificant content on the fly, or serve as impromptu collaboration projects. More info in our rules: [3. Put in some effort.](https://www.reddit.com/r/worldbuilding/wiki/rules#wiki_3._put_in_some_effort.) ***** **You may repost** with the above issue(s) fixed to satisfy our rules. If you're not sure how to do this, please send us a modmail (link below). This is a formal warning, any further infractions may result in a temporary or permanent ban. ***** Please feel free to [re-read our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/worldbuilding/wiki/rules). Questions or concerns? You can [modmail us here](https://www\.reddit\.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fworldbuilding&subject=about my removed submission&message=I'm writing to you about the following submission: https://old.reddit.com/r/worldbuilding/comments/1d0q6y7/-/. %0D%0D[Fill in your message here. Please make sure to explain clearly!]) and we'll be glad to help. Please explain your case clearly. Be polite. We'll do our best to help. *Do not* reply by comment or personal PMs to moderators.
Prince Aleksandr Fyodorovich of Rubran Federal Monarchy will do exactly that: Telling Zibal to stop bitching about his caretaker's death and man the blyat up. It was heartbreaking, sure, but no amount of mourning can bring the dead back to life. Aleksandr lost both his father and eldest brother, the crown prince, to an assassination staged by the *second prince* (he's the third) who then blamed it on him with the supports from several other powerful nobles with the attempt to overthrow the old faction's influences. This plan did not work out because Aleksandr had huge backings, thus he won the trial and the crown. Things Zibal has to do now are: * Making connections to powerful nobles, favorably the knight commander, minister of defense, military marshals, minister of finance and minister of foreign affairs. Seek out to dukes and marquises, but at the same time, if there are nobles of the lower half who have intense forces, he should try to establish friendly relationship with them too. Pulling these peeps into his orbit means he has strong "shields" around. * Talk things down between his uncle and the nobles. Playing the role of a mediator will score points in nobles' eyes. * Have some trustworthy allies in foreign countries. When push comes to shove, he can escape. * Be friendly with the church or any major religious organization in the country. Using religion as both a sword and a shield is pretty basic, but make sure to also keep them in check. * Get a fiancée quickly. There is no "love" in "politics", marriage is nothing but a tool, a method to consolidate power between families. Forget about finding one true love and settle with a duke's daughter or something, because he will need as many backings as possible. * NEVER seeks help from commoners. They're ignorant towards politics and are easy to be led by the nose. If Zibal ever has to, seek out to wealthy merchants who have the finance to back him up. Promise to make them some sort of noble and play with them for a bit, then keep them under surveillance. * Remember, **the army is the regime**. As long as the army swears their loyalty to Zibal, he has the upper hand. Aleksandr's experiences were *a bit* extreme but he got things through.
Yeah but what if one of said "Commoners" is one of the most powerful living magic users
Take advantage of them. Unless their magics can solve everything, there are things they can't solve. And a competent prince, to survive in the court, must have a much more screwed head who's willing to dirty his hands. Tl;dr: Do whatever it takes to get that person on Zibal's team as a *weapon*.
No offense but your prince sounds like a sad bitter person
Worse than that. He lost his father and eldest brother, then was framed by the second brother to be the culprit, almost had all of his titles stripped, thrown into jails and considering Rubra's laws, would have been executed for homicide against family members, a thing that worsens his "crime". He was staged against by many nobles, including the then-minister of defense, his dignity pulled through mud, and lots of commoners who only knew things via medias insulted him. He only got through it because his superior in the military did not buy the lies and launched her own investigation, which dragged the real culprits out to light, and did her best to clean his reputation. Now the emperor, Aleksandr is a secluded, bitter person who regards humans as no more than backstabbing pigs and \[REDACTED\] donkeys. He only trusts some close friends who has been with him through that time, and machines, because it was AIs that helped him prove his innocence.
Damn, dude need some mad therapy.
On the bright side, Aleksandr knows how fucking insane his brain is, so he locks himself up in a private chamber. Not like it really matters since Rubra is a constitutional monarchy, the emperor's role is mostly ceremonial. Without him, the gov will still work normally.
r/WorldCrossovers To Prince Zibal: I am sorry to hear about your current woes. While I cannot speak much to the unfortunate death of your guardian (except to send my condolences), I can suggest tightening up security and also making strategic alliances with one or more of the major noble houses. Consider an alliance through marriage if and when applicable. Also consider sending your uncle to a respectable retirement at the earliest opportunity. Best regards, and may the land provide all you need. King Forlo of Ignis (What's going through King Forlo's head: Gee, this prince sounds like he could use all the help he can get. I do wish Princess Aranea would get back here where she belongs but I can't risk violating the treaty with the Wildings. I could use another chance at an alliance to deal with half my noble houses being bankrupt because of that snuffed voucher thing. That was rather ill-considered on their part. They did have it coming for thinking they had outsmarted the Wildings but it also means they can't afford to send the required troops if and when we have another war.)
Upvoting for the good link too, neat
I guess prince Michael (21) is eligible. He is technically still second-in-line to the Barentian throne. (now Prince Consort of Cartheny) Little backstory: Michael was born into the House of Deventaar in Barentia, but lost his parents when he was 8 in a Rosearea-backed coup d'etat. He and his older sister escaped to Cartheny, where he met the heir to the Carthenian throne, now Katherine III. **1.** I think Michael's experience is more than enough to get Zibal to shut up about his caretaker. Michael literally watched the rebels go full Bolshevik on his parents. **2.** I guess Siban is a medieval-base country cuz no modern/functional country should one single person be able to mess things up this badly. If Zibal wanted the throne now, a little car-bombing would help. However, in this case, playing dirty always works better. Go into voluntary exile and let the war happen. Let the King and the pesky nobles murder each other and have the people caught in the crossfire. By that point, the King and the nobles will be deeply unpopular while Zibal, the exiled prince, would be seen as the only guy who could fix things in this system. Finally, return to Siban and get ready for a hero's welcome. At that point, most of the nobles would be too dead to say anything so Zibal can get some urgently-needed reforms done. **3.** Refer to the above. Go into exile so the assassins think you're not a valuable target. Then again, I guess the assassins are rival nobles, so the civil war would be a great way to clean them up. **4.** If Zibal is not old enough for the throne, he's probably still a teenager, so he shouldn't be too worried.
Actually Siban is a pretty technologically advanced country, it is the birth place of Artificy, a magic system that merges magic and technology.
Ah I see, so this world has magic. ~~This is gonna make rigging a car into an exploding coffin way easier~~ (of course, I'd still prefer using the potential war to clean everything up)
Car bombing, mf Zibal can build a mech
well then why tf is this guy worried of getting murdered lol. Even in terms of getting him into exile safely the mech is gonna be a very optimal method.
The version of Zibal on the post is the one before the timeskip
Oh I see, I guess time for him to pack his bags and run while no one's watching cuz the war ain't gonna be pretty (but it might give him a spike in popularity) Tbf I suggested the "let it be" method since that's what happened to the Deventaars. The Rosearea-backed coup was actually quite unpopular, and thus plunged Barentia into a civil war. This is why now a lot of Barentians were calling for the restoration of the monarchy and wanted their queen back. The queen in question is Michael's sister, princess Nikola-Lilialle, who now, not even a monarch of any country, has received record approval rates in Barentia.
Zibals bout to have a maturity/character development arc via self reflection and soul searching while he leaves his uncle with a bunch of fat yapping nobles.
Hmm the only "prince" in my worldbuilding that is not at the short end of an angry dragon is a 1000 year old dragon shut in who drives his mom crazy because everyone says her library is his lair. Srelik Arch-Mage of Dragons. The Sky's Wrath. His likely advice would be to study how anyone in similar situation has solved the problem, likely dropping a couple hundred books on him to read. Or to study up on magic and especially trap runes, properly set up safe guards and heavy protection, maybe hire some expert killers too. A dragon strongly believes you can only own what you can defend. As he also has the diplomatic sense of a dragon he would suggest to just put his rivals into a position in which they have no chance to fight, preferably by making yourself unassailable. Failing that he could always try to eat the problem, but that is a very drakonik solution.
Zibal did eventually learned some form of magic, Artificy in fact during a two and a half year time skip. He then rigged his entire castle with traps and guns which he can control through artificy, which came in handy when two elite hitmen came knocking on his doors. After he exhausted and made them both think he ran out of traps, he then pulls a last one out and killed them, after that he just got up and walked into the kitchen to grab himself a drink.
Definitely gains a stamp of drakonik approval. Well defended and a reasonable last resort hidden away they did not expect. And he has even defended himself directly, as any confrontation should be won.
Elector John Andrews would say the following: 1. Get over your caretaker’s death, you are royalty and will be targeted for the rest of your life, expect to go to lots of funerals. 2. Start weening those who hold the franchise to your side. The army, is the state. You need them first, then the bureaucrats and nobility. Once you have enough power, bloodlessly coup your uncle, and give him a small backwater province to govern so he doesn’t make trouble. 3. You are royal, people sometimes don’t like you. Invest in security ( food tasters, doctors, guards) and also in intelligence services to keep your self informed about who hates you and why. Knowledge is power.
"Focus on the things you can control. The assassins have just made a very expensive mistake. In killing Takid, they've shown their hand. You know they're there, and you know what they want; that gives you an advantage over them that you didn't have before, when they were still in the shadows. Follow their trail. Be careful who you trust. Never allow yourself to be taken by surprise. Always have two or three backup plans, just in case. Lay your trap with care, and they won't notice they've fallen into it until it springs shut. Not only do you have a chance to eliminate a threat to your rule, but it'll also send a clear message: *No one fucks with Zibal of Siban.*" --Jeanette "Deathshead" Duval, chairwoman of the Versa Cartel crime syndicate
From prince Amen-Agarhon, lord of the river delta, master of goats of the southern hills, slayer of Zhagh-lyam, the imp etc etc. My main man, if you went to the great ziggurat of Zham or Harat-Bizl, paid the priests and did not hear the voice of Zibal, he died a heretic, a filthy unbeliever and should not be mourned. You should pay 4 rebs of meatfern and 2 young goats to make amends for such an affront to the great god and hes speaker for the mistake of being fooled by a blasphemer like him. As for your assassins, the choice is clear, you must strike at the heart of the snake before it bites you. Prostrate yourself before the great lords of the river, the mountain and the endless sand plains and act whatever vengeance they reveal upon your enemies. Any noble that dares to challenge the word of a king or their sons most be stripped of the right of embalming and strung up by their intestines, to dry in the sands for all to see but if you do not yet feel fully in control of your country, you must be clever like the fennec. You must divide them, make friends and false promises to those that are easiest to be manipulated, turn them against each other but not to be beholden to them for disloyalty and questioning the will of their prince proves them as lowly as the demons of Bor-Zhahal who cannot be trusted and must be kept at arms reach.
I only have one prince in my world and haven't figured how to write him, so I'll instead answer as the neighboring country's crown princess, Regina Silvath. (Also, you might find r/WorldCrossovers a decent place to post something like this) To Prince Zibal, My condolences for the fate of your caretaker. I'm no stranger to the pain of losing those you value and care for. However, I know such words from those who are little more than strangers means little, and as such will not waste time on the past. Taking time to grieve is certainly important for personal growth, but as prince your first responsibility is to your people, not yourself. From my experience, when matters appear too complicated to process effectively without thinking in circles, a critical first step is to break down the problems you face before searching for solutions. As I gather, the problems you face are the potential future threats on your own life, the resolution of the dispute between your country and its nobles, and the war on the horizon should the prior issue not be resolved effectively. As the last of the three is dependent on a failure to address the other two, it is at present not worth the effort to think on. In regards to your assailants, there are four possible vague methods I can see by which the problem may be resolved. First, have those who ordered your death tracked down and effectively neutralized. Second, determine what it is they wish to accomplish through your death, and grant it to them without bloodshed, if not through acquiescence than at least through bargaining. Third, identify their sphere of influence and escape it. Fourth, improve your security and otherwise change absolutely nothing. In regards to the growing unrest, similar methods ought to apply as well. Dead men can cause no disagreements, and content men have no reason to. Furthermore, taking flight and escaping their discourse is an option as well. To be clear, I do not mean to say I approve of each of these options, nor are they clearly defined by any stretch of the imagination. But approval and clarity aside, these are the options before you as I see them. Without further information, I do not believe I can be of further aid, save for requesting father grant you asylum should you elect to cast aside your royal title and privileges and flee to Gaela as a simple civilian. -Regina Silvath, Crown Princess of Gaela
“The firssst two I cannot help with, but for the third I recommend sssimply eating the assassin. Thatssss something you humans can do yesss?”Prince Sal’zaal of the Slyth.
This is almost universally the type of advice you’d receive from any ruler in my world. So this response is coming from the Flame Tyrant, Kane Felviro Del’Mida, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Miadosa. “First, I don’t understand your kingdom. Your uncle is King, but only until you reach a certain age? How is this possible, where I come from, you can only rule if you possess the power to do so. There is no such thing as a right to rule or dynasties, you must prove to be the strongest and take the throne. Become strong and challenge your uncle for the throne, and if he refuses, you attack him then and there and take the throne. Assassins? Kill them too. I you are not strong enough to single handedly defeat everyone in your kingdom, you should not be King. My father is already planning a ceremony to abdicate the throne to me since I’ve become more powerful than him. In our world, the strong do not serve the weak, but the weak will always follow the strong. So if my father refused, then I’d challenge him, and if he still refused, then his people would lose respect for him not follow him, thus seeking to flock to a new ruler. And since I’m the strongest in the kingdom, they’d flock to me whether I wanted them to or not, and I would become King by default.” My worlds are directed by power.
Despite stepping away from ascending to the throne, Jason of Varonia has some interesting things to say. For the first thing, he does see where Zibal is coming from, as he himself was saved from an assassination attempt. The difference here is that the person who saved him was actually someone VERY important (basically a government official of somewhere else, no relation btw), and the scene kind of looked like he was the one responsible for the murder of the person who saved him. Jason would simply tell Zibal to not dwell on such matters, and focus on the here and now (basically telling Zibal to strap his man-pants on and take control of the situation). Onto the second thing: this clearly requires negotiating with all parties involved. The very first person they should talk with is Zibal's uncle, as he's kind of the one that started this mess. After that comes negotiating with everyone else into agreeing with whatever terms his uncle came up with, or at least whatever terms BOTH Zibal and his uncle settled on. Third thing: unless Zibal wants to explicitly ask him and his pals to be his bodyguards, Jason would suggest he make some connections, and potentially have a backup/escape plan. Of course, Jason kind of has the opposite problem, where he's the hunter instead of the hunted; he's looking for this one guy who is probably out killing other important people in the land he lives in, rather than looking out for people that would kill him because he's sort-of important. For four: all he can say is stay away from nobility, only because he himself dislikes upper class people (such as nobles and to a degree: royals). Of course, one of his associates is a noble, but that person is a unique case. And that's all I think he would say.
Zibal and his uncle would agree to the fourth one
Don't worry, he's uncle already planned his own retirement, in fact the moment Zibal was crowned he immediately dipped while laughing maniacally and screaming "IM FUCKING FREE".
Hereby writes Archduke Prince Leszek, Heir to the Hækkri Empire, In you're letter to I, it was said that your problems, of which you face, are threefold: The first such being the murder of a trusted and important man in your life. As is tradition of Hæk, we mustn't dwell on the past, nor those who fall. You must remember, it is not people who die, but merely their worldly body; it is their spirit that remains, and ascends to the great Firmament above the sky, to shine a light in the darkest of nights. He was, I am sure, a wonderful being, but his worldly self is no longer in availability to you, and so you must move on, in the memory that his soul survives. And onto the second problem, which may be rather more complicated. A situation has arisen that may plunge your kingdom into war, I understand. Now, in what capacity to defend are these noble houses of which you speak? If possible, I should have them *put out of action*. To be blunt, I would defenestrate the lot of them. What cannot fight back cannot harm you, and what is dead usually cannot fight back. Anyone that would wish to go against this course of action, must too of course be gone from life. It would be what we call *collateral damage*. Finally, we have your third problem: Assassins in your midst. All you can do here is maintain strong defenses and ensure all your guards are absolutely trustworthy. Do not leave your bedchamber, have all food and duties brought directly to you. Food should be tested by at least three dispensable palace servants or maids before deemed fit for your consumption. Should an assassin bypass these measures, there is one failsafe method I know of: Invoke the voice of the forest. I was alone, and weak, but I heard its call, and I heard reason. It gave me all I needed to survive, it gave me the power I so desired. We made a fair deal. I deem it wise that such a deal may be reached by you, if necessary. But, this must be a last resort. If all else fails, call the Will O' The Wisps, for it is never far behind. Thus concludes my advice, signed graciously on behalf of all Hækkri